Temperate rainforest near Vancouver, Canada

Temperate rainforests are found in mild climatic zones with high levels of annual precipitation. These forests grow in several parts of the world, but the largest area of temperate rainforest is the Pacific temperate rain forest ecoregion along the west coast of North America – stretching from Kodiak Island, Alaska, to northern California. The humid climate, which is caused by the Coast Mountains blocking the precipitation that clouds would bring to the interior, has resulted in thriving forests with an abundance of flora and fauna. Many visitors come to wander among the record-high trees such as the Sitka Spruce, Western Red Cedar and Douglas Fir which can grow to a width of 9.4 meters and an overwhelming age of 2000 years.